He
lounged in the shade under a tree at the back of the Jerusalem Biblical
Zoo’s lion enclosure, languidly ignoring the ducks and peacocks who
scampered close to chatter mockingly at him.

A different male ruled this territory a year
earlier. Lider, who was put down at age 16 last September because of his
deteriorating health, would have chased the birds away, said Dennis
Smith, head of the zoo’s carnivore department. In fact, the feathered
tormenters knew not even to approach him.

“Of course, he was the king of the zoo,” said Sigalit Dvir-Hertz, spokeswoman at the zoo.

Lider was extremely popular with visitors, she
said. When the lion died, many people called the zoo or wrote letters
to offer condolences and say they would miss him.

This was Lider’s kingdom. And Ileniya, now 16, was his queen.

Ileniya, 16, is the Jerusalem Zoo’s elderly lioness and the former mate of Lider, the zoo’s 16-year-oldmale lion who was sick and needed to be put down in September. For now, Ileniya and Ziv, the zoo’snew lion, are kept separate (photo credit: Rebecca McKinsey/Times of Israel)

But it’s not Ziv’s kingdom. Not yet.

The two-and-a-half-year-old Asiatic lion was
brought to Jerusalem from Sweden late in January, where Smith said he
was often kept inside, in a back room, especially during the harsh
winters. Originally named Gir for the Gir Forest National Park in India —
the home of most of the remaining wild Asiatic lions — he now goes by
Ziv. Several months into his time in Jerusalem, he’s still not entirely
sure what to do with his new space.

He’s had a rough start. While traveling from Sweden, Ziv was in a box for 24 hours and was scratched up his face and eye.

During his first days inside the Jerusalem zoo’s space for the lions, he prowled the cages all day.

“It was awful, really,” Smith said. “But it’s what lions do in a new place.”

The first few times Ziv was let outside into
his lair, he waited for the first opportunity to come back inside — and
when he did, he’d be panting as though he’d run a race, Smith said. The
crowds, eager to see him, were upsetting to him. A tractor driving by
was enough to send him into a panicked sprint.

Lately, though, he calmly spends most of the day outside.

Ziv,
the Jerusalem Zoo’s new lion, pleases crowds with a quick stroll in his
exhibit (Photo credit: Rebecca McKinsey/Times of Israel)

Ziv’s health is good — he eats 20 kilograms of
chicken and beef, fortified with vitamins, minerals and calcium, every
other day. But adjusting to his new home is going to take a little
longer for this lion.

The zoo built a new “table” for him — but he
doesn’t use it. His enclosure gives him ample space to stroll or run,
but he seems content to stay in one spot.

One of the first times the lions saw each
other — albeit with bars in between them — Ileniya feinted a lunge,
frightening the much younger male.

Ziv’s position as Jerusalem’s new male lion is still as immature as his half-grown mane, but he is improving, Smith said.

Lider
and Ileniya, the previous lion and his lioness, in their enclosure at
the Jerusalem Biblical Zoo (photo credit: Anna Kaplan/Flash 90)

He and Ileniya have started to show a bit of
interest in each other, sharing glances and sniffs through the bars
separating them.

“I did see them put their noses together,” Smith said. “I saw him talk to Ileniya, making a funny noise.”

The older female’s age and poor health will
probably prevent breeding between the two, but Smith is going to keep a
close eye on them — and he’ll still keep them separate for now. He plans
to set up cameras to more closely monitor their interactions at night.

Smith is a patient keeper, and his reputation
goes beyond the zoo. Although he loves his lions, he also has a passion
for birds, and several times, customs officials who have intercepted
illegally smuggled exotic birds at Ben-Gurion Airport have brought them
to him. One he still cares for is a Common Hill Myna, an Asian breed
known for its speaking abilities. This particular bird is blind and
doesn’t speak, but it still responds to Smith when he lifts it and
speaks to it.

Dennis
Smith, head of the Jerusalem Zoo’s carnivore department, holds a blind
Common Hill Myna, one of several birds customs officials have given him
after the animals were intercepted from smugglers at the Ben Gurion
Airport (Photo credit: Rebecca McKinsey/Times of Israel)

That patience is benefiting Ziv. The lion,
too, responds to Smith’s voice now. And whenever he sees the keeper
approach on his red bicycle, the big cat perks up and follows the motion
with his eyes.

Ziv needs more time, Smith said. But he also needs a girl.

Breeding is especially important for Asiatic
lions, which are nearing extinction. Only about 300 remain in the wild,
with about the same amount in captivity, compared to more than 1,500
African lions living in captivity.

In the meantime, the keeper hopes the lion
will continue to acclimate to Jerusalem, build more of a relationship
with Ileniya — even if it’s never a romantic one — and become more used
to the crowds clamoring to see him.

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"If ever you feel like an animal among men, be a LION" -Criss Jami, American Musician and Poet. "Lion: The fiercest and most magnanimous of the four footed beasts" - Samuel Johnson's Dictionary of the English Language (1755)

Asiatic Lion Protection Society

Asiatic Lion Protection Society (ALPS) founded in year 2006, is an NGO working mainly for conservation of Asiatic Lion in Gir forest and in Indian Zoos. Main objectives: To compile max. information about Asiatic Lion plus Gir forest and spread it through out the globe by website, blogs, Wikipedia, yahoo groups etc To help protection & conservation of Asiatic Lion & Gir forest by taking up projects like - Building parapets on open wells. - To contact and request nationalize banks of Gir area to put a condition to built parapet on open wells while sanctioning loan to farmers - At the time of festivals, organize camps near temples like Kankai, Banej & Tulsi Shyam to educate tourist to protect wildlife. - To distribute information and awareness leaflets at check-post to visitors using jungle roads. - Make representation & persuade Govt. to make Gir 'A Plastic Free Zone. Similarly contact local civil bodies to make their areas A Plastic free zone. To inform authorities about illegal activities inside the jungle like wood-cutting, removal of forest produce, poaching, illegal grazing etc. To inform authorities about injured wild animals. Also educate locals of Gir forests as well as school/college students to conserve Gir forest, it's wildlife and to represent to Govt. in favor of trans-location of Asiatic Lion to some other good place in Gujarat. P S: We welcome your comments & posts and expect that our conversation will follow the general rules of respectful civil discourse. You’re fully responsible for everything that you submit here in your comments & posts.

Discover Gir forest with us...

If you wish to travel Gir forest... we will be happy to help, guide and accompany you to explore Gir forest for the best experience. Please contact us for the same.

Gir forest...Gir lies has a topography made up of succession of rugged ridges, isolated hills, plateaus and valleys. Besides, being the last abode of Asiatic lions, Gir forms a unique habitat for ratel, rusty spotted cat, pangolin, ruddy mongoose, civets, paradise flycatcher etc.The overwhelming presence of the omnipotent big cat diverts the attention of the common man from the remarkable bird population that the sanctuary has. However, the birds of Gir sanctuary did attract the great ornithologist, Dr. Salim Ali who believed that, had the Asiatic lions not been there, the area would have been one of the most fascinating bird sanctuaries of the country.People mostly link Gir with "Maldharis" who have survived through the ages by having symbiotic relationship with the lion. They are religious pastoral communities living in Gir. Their settlements are called "nesses".At present, Gir forests of Gujarat (India) is the only natural place where this race of lions i.e. Asiatic lion is found.